Middlegame opponent

Your opponent is always countering, interfering with your plans, and vice versa. This means fresh evaluations of middlegame or other stage of the game are always required. You must constantly process new reports from the front. Even if you have been in this exact position in another game, it is critical to evaluate it a new, especially since your opponent is also aware you’ve been here before and may have prepared something nasty. The thing that worked last time may not work this time, precisely because it worked last time. Survey the landscape, examine the imbalances and formulate a strategy for the middlegame that you encounter or other opening and endgame generally.